Loving Inebriation
by ShadowManipulator7
Summary: Zoro had never been the most flirtatious guy, so seeing him like this was a little nerve-wracking. I began to question whether he had drank too much or if he really was just playing with me . . . Or if he was being serious. - Series 'Loving Revenge' one-shot. KorixZoro, bits of CherryxUsopp and LuffyxNami! '-.-'


[AU: This is a side-story one-shot from my One Piece fanfic 'Loving Revenge'. It's not apart of the main story, more like a filler, ya' know? Yeah, of course you know already what I'm talking about - duh. This includes my two OC's, Kori and Cherry, and has some romance and humor in it, so I hope you like it. Couples: Kori x Zoro, Luffy x Nami, Cherry x Usopp. Thank you and read on.]

[This story has been revised.]

Loving Inebriation

Kori's POV:

"Hey, Kori?"

The entire Straw Hat crew had gathered in the kitchen for breakfast, all sitting around the room as Sanji prepared our morning meal for the day. Luffy and Usopp were sitting next to each other on one side of the table, conversing about something silly - _I really hadn't been paying attention_ - while Robin had her nose buried in a book in a chair next to them. Nami was reading the daily newspaper, sitting on one end of the bench while I sat at the other, my forehead resting against the tabletop dully. Cherry sat between us, listening to the two bakas of the ship as they shared goofy stories, Zoro was slouching in his chair next to me, doing nothing at the moment, and Chopper was steering the ship ahead.

I had decided to rest my head down since I had the worlds worst neck pain ever - _for some unknown reason_ - but I guess I wasn't allowed to have a little peace of mind when Luffy was around. I looked up to see Luffy staring at me with a curious glint in his eyes, his head cocked to the side as usual. "Yeah, what is it?" _I really don't feel like talking right now._

He moved closer to me, leaning over the table as he examined me carefully. I leaned back, wondering what he was up to. He then pointed at me. "What's that purple mark on your neck?"

Cherry sat up at Luffy's words and snapped my head to the side. I tried to struggle away from her grip, but she held on strong, giggling. "Kori's got a hickey!" She cheered in her high, girly voice.

That seemed to draw everybody's attention. Robin looked up from her book; Luffy and Usopp began to snicker; Sanji looked heartbroken, then furious at whichever baka male had done it; Nami just grinned at me in her usual devilish way; Zoro eyed me oddly, raising an eyebrow in the process; and Chopper just shouted something about disgusting human contact.

I raised an eyebrow and tried to look down, not being able to see it. "Where?"

Cherry handed me a compact mirror from her pocket, trying to hide her annoying smirk from me. I popped it open and, sure enough, there was a giant, dark hickey adorning a good, visible spot on my neck. It stretched from my lower neck, over my collar bone, and ended just above my breasts. You could only see it on my neck since my tank top rose so high on my chest, but it was still slightly noticeable. I'm sure my face was pure white from shock as I snapped the mirror shut and glared at my fellow crewmembers. "Yeah, so what?"

I saw Nami grin devilishly at me again. "So nothing. Looks like you got yourself marked for life, though." She snickered, returning to her newspaper.

"Yeah, looks like whoever got you did a considerable amount of damage on you." Usopp said, trying to contain his laughter after I gave him my usual basilisk glare.

"Noooo!" Sanji wailed, little blue broken hearts floating around him as he finally got a good look at the hickey on my skin. "My beautiful Kori-swan! No other man can ever keep you for himself as long as I'm here with you, my dark angel!"

I slumped down in my seat, attempting to ignore my crewmates' annoying, humorless criticisms about the new 'mark' on my neck. I waved off their bizarre antics, getting extremely frustrated as they tried to get a better look at it. I pushed them away and growled. "I have a personal bubble! Nobody enter it!"

"But who did you let in your bubble, Kori?" Robin said, giving me one of her I-know-you-a-little-too-well glances and grinned. She rested her chin in her hands as she continued. "We had all been celebrating last night, so try to think back on what happened yesterday."

I blinked at her. _Yesterday? Was there even a yesterday at all? I don't remember much about it . . ._

"Oh, right! We were all drinking and having a great time!" Luffy laughed excitedly.

"Oh, jeez, why'd you have to remind us?" Usopp slammed his head down on the tabletop. "I have never been so hung over before in my life until after I woke up this morning." He muttered, his face buried in the tablecloth.

_Hmmm . . ._ I thought. _Last night we were all drinking . . .maybe something did happen . . .let's see, try to remember . . .Oh! It's all coming back to me . . ._ I snickered as I recalled the previous night. It all came out in a rush, some spaces still blank, but it was all fitting back together.

_Yeah_, I thought. _We cracked open a few barrels of rum, all sat around the deck, and chugged each one of them down . . .Luffy and Usopp ended up doing something stupid, in which Nami punched them in the heads . . .Sanji tried to kiss Cherry and Robin, but I smacked some sense into him, then joined Zoro over by the barrels . . .Chopper began singing some weird song while we all laughed hysterically . . .Then everyone eventually fell asleep except for me and . . . Zoro . . ._

_Oh, shit._ I knocked my forehead against the table again, the memories of last night all coming back to me . . .

'-.-'

I swallowed the last of my rum and slammed my glass down.

I giggled under my breath as I watched my crew members all knocking their glasses together in happy merriment, the alcohol going to their heads and staining their cheeks pink. Even Nami, who probably couldn't even get drunk, was acting just moronic as the rest of us were as she downed another drink. We were all settled outside on the main deck of the ship, enjoying our drinks as the night passed by us gracefully. The chilly air tickled my bare shoulders a bit, but I ignored the feeling as I took in the scene before me.

We had been drinking for a while, laughing and telling jokes since we were all content enough to let go of our troubles for once. We were pirates, so we were entitled to a little fun every once in a while. Luffy and Nami shared the stairs leading up to Merry's head, Chopper lying on the ground not too far from them - _why Chopper is drinking, I have no clue_. Robin sat on a crate near the mast reading a book - _what the hell?_ - while Usopp tried to out-drink Sanji in a corner on the other side of the deck. I sat on the ground, my back against banister with Cherry and Zoro on either side of me.

Cherry finished off the last of her drink and smirked at me. "I'm gonna' go over there now." She then stood up, wobbling slightly, and sat next to Usopp, who had fallen over after his defeat against Sanji.

I snickered and looked over at Zoro, raising my empty glass to him. "Refill it."

He rolled his eyes, but took it anyway and filled it up to the brim with sweet rum. He handed it back to me, clinking his own glass with mine as we both chugged the drinks back. I huffed out a breath as my head began to feel light and wobbly. I noticed that even Zoro had a faint patch of pink across his tanned cheekbones after he finished his drink. I chuckled as I saw him knock over his now empty glass, trying to set it back upright and failing miserably.

I think he saw me chuckling and turned his attention back to me. "What's so funny?" He mumbled, his words barely slurring at all. _This guy is so lucky he can hold his alcohol so well._

I shook my head. My brain felt like it was rattling back and forth, and I liked it. "Nothing."

"Liar." He responded immediately.

I brought my arms up over my head, gripping the railing bars behind me. "I don't know. I must be drunk if I think something you're doing is funny." I replied, hardly knowing what I was saying.

"Oh, I'm not usually funny?" Zoro challenged, giving me that all-too sexy smile of his.

_He shouldn't do that when I've been drinking! It's not fair!_ I leaned away from him a little bit and raised an eyebrow. "Nope." I narrowed my eyes and gave him a small smile, an action I knew men found attractive and dangerous in most women. Including this aho marimo.

He chuckled under his breath and began to inhale another glass of rum.

The drinking party went on for another hour or so until almost everybody had passed out. Chopper was still in the same position on the ground, sleeping heavily, and Robin had put her book down and used it as a pillow on the deck. Nami was resting in Luffy's arms in one corner of the ship, eyes still open but drooping as our captain snored - _looking insanely adorable, might I add_ - while Cherry was curled up on Usopps' lap in another corner, her head on his shoulder and his arms around her securely. Sanji was sprawled across the deck like a starfish not too far away from where I sat next to Zoro. I assumed the swordsman fell asleep from the way his body was slumped down and his eyes were shut, so I was pretty much the only one still awake.

I decided that I didn't really like sitting on the hard wood and moved to stand up, wobbling awkwardly as I did so. I managed to stand, but was soon pulled backwards by something, or, more specifically, someone. Strong arms had been hooked around my waist and I ended up lying on top of the marimo swordsman. He smiled at me, carefully righting me into a seating position on his lap before sitting up on his own, his back resting against the railing. My knees were straddled on either side of his legs, putting me into a very . . .uncomfortable position with my fellow crewmember.

I stared at him. "What are you doing? I wanna' go to bed." I tried to force myself up, but wasn't able to move from Zoro's strong grip around my waist.

"What's the matter? Don't wanna' stay out here in the cold with the rest of your crewmates?" I could tell he was mocking me, probably noticing how I shook as the wind whispered by us every so often. His smile grew when I nodded in reply. "We want you to stay out here."

I rolled my eyes. "Everybody's too drunk to even move right now, Zoro." I responded. I then noticed how he pulled me slightly closer, my hands forced to rest on his shoulders and chest just to create some type of distance between us.

"I want you to stay out here." He said in a low, dangerous tone.

_I really hope he's just messing with me right now, 'cause if he's not then I might do something that I'll regret doing later . . . _I thought as one of his hands toyed with the hair around my throat. I twitched slightly under his touch as he twirled my hair between his fingers, his warm skin brushing against my cold, pale neck at one point.

I cleared my throat and tried to move again, but was, once again, unable to. "I don't like the cold." Okay, that was a lie. He knew it was a lie, too, but I just wanted to come up with a good reason for him to let me go. I didn't feel very safe being here in this position with Zoro. It just wasn't right. This wasn't the way crewmembers were supposed to act with each other . . .Okay, that was a lie, too. I mean, look at Cherry and Usopp, or Luffy and Nami, or even Sanji and whichever one of us Straw Hat girls he tried to flirt with on a daily basis. _But it still wasn't right . . . I don't know why it's not right, so don't bother asking!_

Zoro had never been the most flirtatious guy, so seeing him like this was a little nerve-wracking. I began to question whether he had drank too much or if he really was just playing with me . . .Or if he was being serious.

He pulled me closer to him steadily until our faces were inches away from each other. I could feel his rum-scented breath on my hot cheeks. He smirked at me - _damn that sexy wry grin!_ - and whispered. "I'll keep you warm."

_I think I've finally lost my mind! I thought. The alcohol isn't helping, either . . ._

My head was so dizzy that I couldn't tell who had moved first, him or me. But either way we found ourselves sealed together, kissing for whatever reason. It may have just been the insane amounts of rum in our bodies that made us act so intimate with each other, but I secretly hoped that wasn't the reason.

My hands slithered around his neck, curling in his green hair as his fingers played with the hem of my black tank top. I sat closer to him, strengthening the kiss between us. He made a low sound of approval deep in his throat and gently licked my bottom lip. I snickered and continued to kiss him more passionately, even when my mind started to drift off a short while later.

'-.-'

_Oh, shit._ I repeated in my mind, my head still attached to the tablecloth.

I couldn't quite remember what had happened after that intimate scene with Zoro, other than we had escaped into my cabin room and had made out for a while later. Short glimpses from our time together were being played over and over again in my brain, scenes that I really didn't want to see at the moment. We had been making out for a long time in a rabid passion - _I didn't even know Zoro had any passion in his system_ - which eventually led to me taking off his shirt, hiding it under my bed, and then he gave me the biggest hickey in the freaking universe! I think we fell asleep after a while, but when I woke up he was gone, but his shirt was still under my bed.

_God, this is a nightmare . . ._

"Looks like you finally remember, hmmm?" Robin snickered.

I glared up at her. "Actually no, it's all just a blur right now. But when my head stops hurting so much, I'll let you know what happened straight away." I said sarcastically.

Robin grinned, returning to her book as she continued to speak to me. "I'm sure you will."

'-.-'

The crew teased me about my giant hickey for the next few days. Yes, I said _days_. Even after the fifth day it still hadn't gone away! Whatever Zoro had done to succeed in keeping the mark on my skin for this long amount of time really wasn't helping me at the moment. Of course, he hadn't really said anything about our little encounter that night, but that's only because we hadn't had a private conversation together since Sanji decided to be my new bodyguard on the ship. He kept everyone from the crew - including the girls - away from my neck at all times. It was really annoying. So, even though I really wanted to talk to Zoro about things between us, we just hadn't had the chance yet.

Finally, an opportunity for communication appeared one quiet, late night out on the deck of the Going Merry. I sat on the deck near the railing, my legs dangling through the open spaces between the bars. I had the distinct feeling that I wasn't alone, but I didn't bother to question it at the time. I breathed in the fresh ocean air as I tried to clear my thoughts and meditate in peace. However, being in the Straw Hat Crew, I had no such luck at finding peace on this ship. I heard someone approaching and opened my eyes just as Zoro sat down next to me, his back resting against the banister. He said nothing as we both just sat there, watching each other for no apparent reason.

I blinked and finally broke the silence. "Why are you up so late?" I asked. It must have been around midnight at least, so it made no sense that he would be up and about at this time of night.

He shrugged. "Couldn't sleep."

I almost laughed in surprise to his out-of-character reply. "Well, that's a first. I can't imagine that you of all people would have developed insomnia, Zoro."

"No, that's just you." Zoro mumbled.

I rolled my eyes at him, turning my attention back to the cool ocean air. If I focused hard enough then I could simply ignore Zoro and get back to my meditation. He really wasn't that much of a distraction to me - _okay, he was, but I couldn't let him know that._

My mind had almost fully cleared itself when Zoro spoke up again. "How's your neck?"

I snapped my eyes open and glared at him. "Fine, no thanks to you." I whispered harshly.

Zoro remained serious, although that stupid smirk was trying to wiggle its way onto his mouth again. He huffed and glared at me. "I'm just trying to see if you're alright."

My expression softened as I looked out to the sea again. "Are we alright? We spent a night together in total inebriation, then just acted like it never even happened." I turned to him. "Let's just forget about it and go back to being crewmates."

His eyes hardened as he growled in a low tone. "We can't forget, and why should we." It wasn't a question, but a statement, and even though I knew this, I couldn't help but answer anyway.

"Because it could ruin everything." I stated.

"We'll always be nakama, Kori." Zoro replied seriously. "Even if something wrong happens between us. Don't think that we won't ever be anything besides the best towards each other, 'cause that can't happen."

I sighed. "I know."

We sat in silence again for a few more minutes, listening to the sounds of the waves crash against our boat as we sailed on. The air chilled my skin, but made the mark on my neck burn for whatever reason. I turned to Zoro again, but he was staring at the sky, his hands resting on his katanas gracefully. He glanced sideways at me, silently questioning my final decision on the matter

For the first time, I smiled wholeheartedly. "Yeah." I whispered. "We'll be fine."

He then leaned over, his nose brushing against mine momentarily, and pressed our lips together. I kissed him back, allowing my eyes to shut as he pulled me closer by my neck. It was a short kiss, sweet and to the point, so when we both pulled away we were just gazing at each other.

I gave him a serious look and said. "I still have your shirt."

He snickered. "I know, and I want it back sometime."

"Nah, I don't think so."

'-.-'

The next morning I entered the kitchen with a newly formed hickey over my old one, making my neck line even darker. _Hell, it was probably going to stay there forever now, no thanks to Zoro!_ I was careful to hide it this time, however, since Zoro and I had both agreed to keep our relationship on the downlow for now. Neither one of us found the idea of trying to put up with everyone's snippy remarks on the subject at all appealing - _especially any unnecessary comments from Sanji or Cherry._ So the baka swordsman and I settled in the galley with our other friends, acting as if there was nothing going on between us at all, that everything was perfectly right with the world already.

That's when I noticed something very interesting about our ships navigator.

"Hey, Nami, what's that on your neck?" I asked, a devilish smile spreading across my face as she flushed red with embarrassment. _Poor Luffy's in for it now . . ._

END

[AU: So that's the end of this one-shot. If you liked this, check out my main story 'Loving Revenge' where Kori and Cherry are introduced into the Straw Hat Pirate Crew. I'll write more one-shots like this eventually, well, after I finish writing the main story. Finishing that should be my first priority. Review, favourite, alert, anything! Haha! Signing off - ShadowManipulator7 '-.-']


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